QUEENSRYCHE

Live at Phoenix Concert Theatre March 7th, 2013 ( Toronto)

Review by Claudia Foote
Pictures by Pat Crawford from Radical Images

QUEENSRŸCHE 2012

Remember when your heart quickened in anticipation of attending a concert? That period of time where you are counting down the time until you entered the venue and felt that charge of energy that you shared with everyone around you. Strangers yet connected by a commonality. LIVE MUSIC of a favourite band. This concert was no exception.

From the onset, It was apparent to me from the resounding cheers and swell of people clamouring to get to the front of the stage that they were ready to see and hear what this line up had to offer. Todd LaTorre was about to greet them in kind. He took to the stage and immediately offered up his vocals in the opening number, “Queen of the Reich”. There was a collective cheer and the rest of their show would not disappoint. Fans at this show, were also treated to a guest performance by Glen Drover (formerly of Megadeth / King Diamond / Eidolon…).

For any fan, it is never easy when there are changes in members, especially when it involves a new lead vocalist. There are few bands that have done this with successful results. In my opinion, this Queensryche line up will rank amongst the successful ones.

Todd LaTorre is not only a skilled vocalist but and an engaging front person for a very skilled and renowned band. He took the time to make everyone in the audience feel like he was personally responsible for a memorable night, taking the time at one point to grab a fans camera to take pictures (if anyone knows if they were posted online, let us know, we’d love to see them!). The entire band was engaging and also humorous. Just before the encore, Scott took to the mic and invited anyone to come up and play the drums like he did for 90 minutes (potty mouth excluded).

They ended up doing three encore performances, culminating in “Empire”.